About Me

I've had one foot in the past ever since I was a kid. One of these days I'll be history, myself, but meanwhile I'll stop here to make some notes about things that interest me and maybe you. Scroll down to the bottom of this page to find my books.

Saturday, June 19, 2010

The scene at left is from the tomb of Amenhotep [also called Huy] and depicts Nubians bringing tribute to Tutankhamun. This section of the longer scene shows a lady accompanied by some men and the caption next to them reads " children of the chiefs of all countries" [of the southern regions]. These are, unlike the other foreigners in the painting, dressed in Egyptian-style costume and jewelry. Note, however, that a new style seems to be involved as the people from the south have straps on the heels of their white sandals and beads descend from their upper armlets. The lady appears to be wearing a golden diadem, which perhaps has golden elements hanging from it that cover her hair. Either that, or she is wearing a blonde wig or has had her own hair bleached by some method. Perhaps this woman and her companions are part of the tribute, a suit for peace that includes much gold and the children of some chieftain--especially the young woman, as females were not emissaries, normally. It would not be far fetched to conclude that the lady is intended as a wife of the pharaoh, Tutankhamun, and there is no other conceivable reason for her presence.

The status of the female is further indicated by the fact that she stands alone, here and in her ox-drawn chariot farther back in the scene, while her compatriots are shown in groups.

Tutankhamun, as we know, already had a wife named Ankhesenamun, his close relative, but the kings of Egypt were not monogamous as a rule. If this Kushite girl was given to Tut in a political marriage, she would have been secondary to the Great Wife, Ankhesenamun, however. That we do not see this girl depicted with Tutankhamun in a wifely role would not have been unusual, either. In the 18th Dynasty, lesser wives were not depicted with their royal husbands.

Tuesday, June 15, 2010

About the curse of King Tut...well...I am not a believer in curses but I have to admit there are some strange coincidences there. For one thing, has anybody ever noticed how much Lord Carnarvon resembles Ay, the man who succeeded Tutankhamun as pharaoh? I don't have a good photo of the plaster mask from Amarna that is surely Ay but everybody knows what it looks like. Compare it to this photo of the Earl. Same little narrow eyes, long thin face and nose. Many members of the Amarna family had large heads and someone once wrote that Lord Carnarvon had such an elongated skull that he had to have his hats specially made.

Some believe that Amenhotep III, Tut's grandfather, married a woman of Semitic ancestry and, judging by the face of the mummy of Queen Tiye's father, Yuya, there's a good possibility that's so. Lord Carnarvon's wife, Lady Almina, was the illegitimate daughter of Lord Alfred Rothschild. The wealthy Earl of Carnarvon died in Egypt of systemic poisoning caused by an infected mosquito bite on his face. It is now known that Tutankhamun's death was probably hastened by a mosquito, too--one that gave him malaria. At the time of Carnarvon's death, his dog back at his home, Highclere Castle, supposedly keeled over and died, as well. Hmmm...looks like Anubis decided to finish off the man's best friend while he was at it :-( Or maybe Tut's ghost took one look at Lord Carnarvon and thought it was the return of Ay, the man who had the nerve to have himself portrayed as pharaoh in the young king's own tomb, a liberty never before taken. In fact, the tomb was a cramped, shoddy affair, totally unfit for a royal spectre. Others have written of strange coincidences surrounding the discovery of KV62. Thought I'd just add to the nonsense...er...mystique.